Sorting-machine.



PTENTBD SEPTLfZZ, 1903.

H. SPEISER.

SORTING MACHINE.

APPLIUATION FILED JULY 2. 1902.

2 SHEETS-SHEET l.

E0 MODEL.

FICLI No. 739,736. A PATBNTED sEPT.22,'19os.

' H. sPEIsBR.l

soRTING MAGHINB,

APPLICATION FILED JULY 2. 1902.

Patented September 2.2,* 1903.

PATENT OFFICE.

HENRl SPEVISER, OF PARIS, FRANCE.

somme-MACHINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of LettersPatent No. 739,736, dated September22, 1903. Application iiled .Tnly 2, 1902. Serial No. 114,050. (No model)l To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRI SPEISER, engineer, residing at 51bis Avenue dela Republique, Paris, in the Republic of France, have invented certainnew and useful Improvements in Machines for Sorting Articles Accordingto Their Size, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a machine for sorting articles according totheir size, and which maybe used, for exam ple, for sorting oranges orcylindrical articles or those Which are almost ofregular form or shape.

The invention consists, essentially, in charging the articles to besorted onto conveyers passing through a series of fixed openings, whichbecome narrower, in combination with ejectors so operated as to throwout the articles left by the conveyers on the edges of the saidopenings.

The accompanying drawings will give by way of example a clearunderstanding of the invention.

Figure 1 is a sectional elevation on the line A B of Fig. 2, giving aback View of my machine for sorting oranges. Fig. 2 is a verticalsection on the line C D of Fig. 1, and Fig. 3 is a sectional detailshowing a modification.

The machine comprises horizontal' conveyers provided with troughs 1,extended across the machine and hung by means of pivots 2 on two endlesssprocket-chains 3, mounted on either side of the machine onsprocket-wheels 4 and 5. wheels 5 is vdriven by means of a ratchetwheel7, on which acts a pawl 8, carried by an oscillating lever 9, which inturn is operated by a pitman 10, attached to a toothed Wheel 11. Thelatter is rotated by a pinion 12, which is turned by means of acrank-handle, a belt-pulley, or other suitable device. At eachrevolution of wheel 11 lever 9 and pawl 8 are reciprocated, shaft b' andWheels 5 being thusintermittingly turned, the troughs moving in thedirection shown by the arrows in the drawings and each time a distanceequal to that between the said troughs, so

' that each trough takes the place of that which The common shaft 6'ofthe lower transversal part 14, the height of which can be adjusted, bymeans of screws 15, so as to leave under the said transversal part anopening I of a determined width. The said table 13 is intended toreceive the oranges to be sorted, which are being constantly brought infront of the opening I by an attendant. The inner edge of the-table isprovided with a shutter 16, pivoted to a stud or spindle 17 andpresenting an upwardly-extending fiange 18, against which comeintocontact the o1'- auges passing through the opening I. Opposite theshutter 16 and Within the machine lies a fixed transversal part 19,which guides the oranges and retains the same when once received in atrough 1--that is to say, when the shutter 16 has moved compietely overinto ment of the shutter 16 takes place when they pawl 8 is riding backon the teeth of the ratchet-wheel 7--that is to say, when the cups arestationary.

At the back of the machine are arranged a series of hoppers 29 to takethe oranges out of the machine, each of the said hoppers comprising atransversal part 30, `which can be brought more or less nearer to thetroughs by means of adjlisting-screws 31. Opposite the transversal parts30 lie shutters 32, which serve both as stops and as ejectcrs. When thesaid shutters occupy the position shown in full line in the drawings,there exists between the same and the transversal parts 30 the openingsIl III 1V, dsc., the widths of which gradually decrease from the top tothe bottom of the machine and of which the edges lie or are located inabout the middle of the intervals of the positions in which the cupscome to a stop.

The lower shutter 32 is mounted on the shaft 26, and the other shutters32 are mounted on the shafts 33, so connected to shaft 26 by means ofconnecting-rods 34 and cranks 35 that all the shafts, together withtheir shutters 32, oscillate simultaneously to take up the positionshown in dotted lines in Fig. 2 and to return to their initial position.This double oscillating movement is produced at the same time as that ofthe shutter 16 when operated by the cam 20.

The operation of the machine is as follows: When the troughs 1 aremoving, the shutter 16 is charged with oranges which are able to passinto the opening I, such oranges as are toolarge for the said openingbeing laid aside. When the troughs come to a stop, the shutter 16 beginsto move over and transfers the oranges it carries into the trough 1,located between the said shutter and the aforesaid transversal part 19,filling the entire length of the trough, after which the shutter movesback into its initial position. Then the troughs are moved again, andwhen brought to a stop the next succeeding cup is charged with oranges,and so on. On the other hand, When the troughs are moving charged withoranges the said troughs pass through the openings II III IV, rbc., andleave on the transversal parts 30 and the shutters 32 such oranges asare unable to pass through the said openings. Then the troughs againcome to a stop in the place of those which preceded them. The greatestoranges are thus retained above the opening II, and those of which thesize gradually diminishes are retained above the other openings. Vhenthe troughs are stationary, the cam 20 causes the shutters 32 tooscillare,

so that the oranges retained by them are moved up and thrown over thetransversal parts 30 into the hoppers 29, Where they are separatelygathered. The smallest oranges, which have passed freely through thelast opening VI, are conveyed by the troughs l until the latter meetwith the fixed bufling parts 36, which move the troughs over on theirpivots, the oranges contained in the same falling under the machine.

Instead of the shutters 32 I may use, as shown in Fig. 3, the fixedtransversal parts 32, located opposite the adjustable transversal parts30, and separate ejector-bars 37, suitably operated.

bottom, substantially as specified.

2. A sorting-machine, comprising troughs mounted on endless chains,means for imparting step-by-step motion thereto, an oscillating feederfor the troughs, receivers arranged at one side of the machine, and theejectors arranged at varying distances from the receivers, the spacesdiminishing from the top to the bottom, substantially as specified.

3. A sorting-machine, comprising a frame, an endless conveyer havingtroughs, movable in the frame, means for intermittingly movving theconveyer, a feeder for the troughs at one side of the frame, receivingdevices at the opposite side of the frame, ejectors opposite thereceiving devices, the space between the ejectors and receiving devicesgradually diminishing from the top to the bottom, and means forsimultaneously operating the ejectors.

4. In a sorting machine, a frame, a feedingtable at one side of theframe, an oscillating shutter at the inner edge of the table, means foroperating said shutter, the stop-bar in the frame and opposite thetable, an endless conveyer movable between the table and bar, andsorting devices at the opposite side of the frame.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed myname in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

' HENRI SPEISER.

W'itnesses:

EDWARD P. MACLEAN, .EDMOND BLTRY.

